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Imperial News Service In Depth Essay 0120 - The Grand Traveller
INSIDE the Grand Traveller - A voyage aboard the new luxury cruise ship of Corridor
Greetings fellow Travellers! I'm reporting today from Kaasu in Corridor aboard a brand new Snapii boat, but that's not the subject of this report. I'm here covering the maiden voyage of the flagship of a new class of luxury cruise starships. The Grand Traveller was just christened and slipped from her forms and in a few hours I'll be aboard her with over a hundred of Corridor sector's elite and famous. The ship is amazing and the parade of small craft and yachts led by the Duchess' own is astonishing. Even more so when you consider some of these craft, including this boat, will be making the jump with the Grand Traveller as one of the many services featured. I'm still trying to pick out the secret escorts but they so perfectly match their civilian counterparts its impossible. Trust me, I've seen the schematics for them, and anyone who attempts star piracy against a GT should have their head examined, if it can be recovered from the wreckage of their corsair. For those of you who haven't been following the news this journey started a little over two years ago with a request by the Kaasu Intergalactic Star Shipyards.
The call went out at that time for design proposals to celebrate the approaching Silver Jubilee of the appointment of Lady Anna Vokova Kaasu-Rehman as Duchess of Kaasu. The goal was to create a new luxury starship class that could serve as part of an eventual Domain spanning fleet to not only encourage more travel but also serve as an envoy for the Imperium and the Duchess as its representative in Corridor. As such the design was to incorporate a new level of service and safety. The winning architect would not only become famous and wealthy but the design would provide a much needed civilian diversity to the shipyards of Corridor, long famous for their military specialties.
But that as they say was then. Today we see the result of that call and the hard work of the builders to prepare this ship for her premiere on the date of the 25th anniversary of the appointment of the Duchess. Parts of it were built throughout Corridor and shipped to Kaasu for the final assembly around the jump core and the final hull plating. This method and the ship's modular design saved considerable time, and once production is fully engaged will result in a rate of one GT class ship completed every 2 years per slip. To better acquaint the public with this new ship I will be giving you an inside look courtesy of the Duchess, the Captain, and the architect. Mention should also be made, and my thanks extended to, my patron for this trip, Count Mclean. It is by his generous employment that I will experience this trip to the fullest through ferrying his new Snapii boat aboard the Grand Traveller. Normally the purchase and transport of this fine Kaasuian boat to its new home in Drayne would involve four separate trips aboard a Subsidized Merchant at an expense of more than Cr150,000 and two months or more for the trips. Aboard the Grand Traveller the cost will be less than a third that and that includes the basic high passage ticket. However, to better sample the full experience for my readers, I have put my pay for the delivery towards upgrading the basic high passage ticket to the full grand passage ticket.
Let's begin the tour with an overview of the ship's exterior as it makes its way to the jump point. To some she may be less than beautiful on the surface but this is a design who's beauty is within. She is a conglomerate of modular compartments arranged into the shape of a capital letter "A" with the thrusters and engineering located in the base of the upper triangle which houses most of the ships operations. The two legs form the passenger quarters with every stateroom afforded an exterior view to the side and forward, while on the inside of each leg are 10 heavy modular containers for cargo and small craft. In addition to the Kobiir (COO-beer) class shuttle to transfer those modular containers up to three Lady class ships may be carried in the forward triangle's internal hangers. This includes room for the Duchess' own Lady Marial, a type Y yacht, with its dedicated hanger in the forward section of the triangle near the private quarters. The other two hangers may be rented for transport by owners of the popular Lady class type Y yacht or used to carry the Raegten class (ray-TIN) type Y escort cutters.
At this range and without anything near enough for scale its hard to get a feel for just how Grand this Traveller is. With a full complement of modules she displaces some 10,000 tons. Fully laden she can make a jump of 3 parsecs and travel at a stately 1g. Her armored hull and the oneway glassteel viewports are all finished in an antiqued silver. Huge glassteel ports shaped as Imperial Sunbursts are inlaid on the the dorsal and ventral hull of the forward triangle. They glow softly from the dedicated lighting behind them and I'm told the jump grid is programmed to trace out from them creating a spectacular display as this Grand Traveller prepares to jump. While the ship includes fuel scoops they are well worked into the hull and when closed, as is their normal state, they are not visible at all.
That's about it for the general exterior layout and the call has gone out for "all aboard" so its time for me to join the others with craft to dock and then join the crowd in the Imperial Room for the jump party. Remember the Imperial Sunbursts I mentioned, the dorsal one is a feature element of the two story ceiling of the Imperial Room and I'm told its just as beautiful from the inside as the outside.
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Hello again, the docking of the boat was exceedingly easy thanks in part to the advanced computer control and a dedicated flight control officer. Once aboard in one of the modules the crew secured the boat while I got to stroll in shirtsleeve comfort to my nearby quarters. Most of the passengers boarded earlier after a quick flight on the shuttle and are already enjoying the hospitality of the crew in the Imperial Room. The shuttle can carry up to 45 passengers in luxury comfort at 6 gees in its standard module, which if needed converts to a lifeboat with emergency low berth capacity for 360 souls. When not ferrying passengers it can leave the module in the hanger and transport any of the carried modules. This is often done to speed priority cargo to its destination while the passengers enjoy the slow cruise to port. Without any modules the airframe shuttle is incredibly agile, performing much like a heavy fighter.
My grand passage stateroom is on the upper level of the port leg, near the middle. The lower level of each leg is for the basic high passage staterooms while the double size grand staterooms are on the upper levels. Each upper floor section has two grand staterooms and two high staterooms, as well as a small common lounge. The lower floor has six high staterooms and a similar lounge. The upper floor may be sealed off from the lower and adjacent modules in case of emergency or to create a secure suite if desired by the passengers. The lower floor can also be sealed off in emergency but passengers may not book suites here. The aft of each leg houses a 100 ton replusor bay for defense and emergency small craft braking. Together the two can stop any small craft in its tracks. A third 100 ton repulsor bay is mounted in the bow for similar defense and utility.
Moving forward to the Imperial Room one finds the corridors are spacious and the lockers for passenger baggage set into the wall opposite the staterooms are very handy and thoughtful. The regularly placed lounges allow easy access between decks and to the escape pods. In addition to the capacity of the shuttle there are also enough escape pods for the full passenger capacity, allowing full double passenger occupancy supported emergency escape. The escape pods are clearly marked and can safely, though not very comfortably carry six average persons away from the ship in the unlikely event the order to abandon ship is given. Traversing part way forward through the lower deck I can say it is every bit as luxurious as the upper deck with the only difference being the number of doors on each side of the lounge indicating the smaller stateroom sizes. The lounges are not large but comfortable, with each consisting of a pair of small tables with three comfortable chairs around them. A small lift connects the two floors and there is a simple automat and fresher for passenger convenience. The end of each lower section is marked by a small airlock, connecting adjoining sections and allowing access to the attached modular containers, the upper levels lack the airlock and simply have an iris to seal them off.
Back on the upper deck at the end of each leg where it joins the forward triangle is a large lobby. It is here that most passengers will board after arriving via the shuttle or a small craft docking in the spacious hanger or through the outer airlock connections to the high port or other ships. Forward of the lobbies are the many shops, services and entertainment options for passengers, all leading to the central Imperial Room with its soaring ceiling. The room is already packed and the time to engage the jump is nearly at hand. The servants with trays of drinks and appetizers number almost as many as the passengers. In my slow meander taking in the sites along the way I have managed to miss most of the lesser speakers and it is only the Duchess left to say her piece and give the official order to charge the jump drive before we tumble into the void.
In the grand tradition of starships of old the lights of the Imperial Room are dimmed as the jump drive is engaged and the crowd grows hushed. Then the glow and arcing of the jump grid becomes evident through the huge clear Imperial Sunburst in the ceiling and the room breaths a sigh of rapture as all eyes are drawn to the spectacular display. Then in a sudden explosion of light the whole room glows in the light before it fades to black and we are in jump space. The crowd goes wild, passengers and crew both, cheering as the lights come up and the musicians begin to play. We have jumped and now the first and biggest of many parties can begin, to be outdone only by the breakout party at the other end of the void. I notice the Imperial Sunburst has now been switched to display mode and presents a pleasant early evening Kaasuian sky scene, in perfect synch with the ship time I note glancing at my chrono.
I'll pass on this festivity, there will be more over the next few days and I still have the lower forward deck to prowl and report to you, and then its on to the bridge to meet the Captain.
Threading my way out of the crowd I find the halls eerily quiet thanks to the absence of any other passengers and the excellent attention of the active acoustics. Throughout the passenger areas of the ship normal conversations can be held and only a meter away even the sharpest ear can't make it out as more than a sibilant whisper. Even shouts only carry a few meters and all the regular extraneous mechanical and electrical noises are entirely canceled. The quiet is spooky and I'm glad when my special vip pass automatically opens the access to the lower decks for me, and the familiar hum of a living ship and the sound of its crew at work.
Below decks of the forward triangle the engineering sections are arranged around the lower aft hanger, which is directly below the shuttle hanger. The thrusters are to port and starboard, with the power plants forward of that. In the middle, right over the other Imperial Sunburst, though heavily shielded and armored, is the jump drive, the very heart of the ship. Except for the size and newness these areas are much like those of any other starship.
Flanking the engineering space to port and starboard along the hull are the crew quarters, similar to the lower deck passenger quarters, including small lounges regularly spaced between groups of staterooms. Catching a crewperson in the hall I get a peek inside one of the rooms. While nice enough, better in fact than most small traders, these quarters are not quite as luxurious as those of the passengers, until we come to the officers sections. Here the quality is a mirror of that of the lower passenger decks. Its only through the officers section, requiring a crew or vip pass and verification from an officer on the bridge that we can get access to the bridge in the lower bow and the hanger of the Duchess' yacht above that. Access to the private quarters is only through the bridge or directly from the hanger.
The bridge is huge by all standards, as expected for a ship of this size and complexity. Full ports along the outer hull afford excellent views though of course they are not really practical for operations. Some traditions and psychological needs die slowly, some live forever. The aft of the bridge is the C&C for the Captain and immediate subordinates, as well as a couple vip seats. From here one can see the whole bridge which is slightly recessed below the level of the C&C area. The areas below are for control of the sub-systems such as the defenses and flight control. The computers and electronics are also part of this area.
The Captain and the architect, who have both left the party early to check out the ship's performance review post jump, are a wealth of insight into the technical and logistical aspects of the ship. For example, while no secret few know that the ship can, with all the modular containers dropped, make Jump 4 with a simple powerplant swap for an advanced model. This would be done if the ship were needed in service to the Imperium in time of war so it could match fleet jump minimums. This does bring up a question. Why is the ship built to such a common level of technology when Kaasu is one of the leading edge shipyards of Corridor? The answer is for many reasons. Ability to service the ship at almost any class A or B starport for one. The modular construction nature and spreading the wealth of the build among many systems is another. This also works with the plans to expand the service, allowing even more shipyards to build new ships. In fact only the weapons systems are designed to Kaasuian standards and they are easily added or swapped for lower tech versions if necessary, or fitted with Kaasuian exports if the ship is built elsewhere. One interesting tidbit let slip by my comment on the quaint custom of jump dimming is that it is in fact a necessity, as the powerplant is so tightly designed that when drawing power with all systems the ship does tend to brown out. It seems the "adoption" of the custom is a clever smoke screen to cover a minor design flaw.
I could go on but I am called by the Duchess to join her in the private suite for a brief tour, its sure to be the high point of my report. Ascending in the elevator I wonder what kind of reception awaits me and who else will be in attendance. When the door opens I am greeted by the Duchess's Guard, two very solid looking obviously ex-Marines, one male and one female. I'm sure I've been thoroughly scanned on the way up but it doesn't compare to the feeling of the calculated assessment of these two. With a short gesture I am invited in and drink in the grandeur of the quarters. It is an open design plan on several levels with clever use of holoscreens and the virtual environment makes it feel like I've stepped into the garden of a mountain estate on Kaasu, above the taint where the air is intoxicating and the temperature mild. I see the Duchess waiting by a small terrace table and join her. While we wait for a light morsel to go with the fine wine she informs me the setting is a complimentary to her real gardens at home, confirming my impression. The scene is also timed to match Kaasu time I note and sunset is nearly upon us. As the air chills I am invited into the viewroom where we have warm coaadiir and then a quick tour of the rest of the rooms. All tastefully and elegantly done. We end with a look in on the Lady Marial in her hanger before I bid the Duchess a good evening and take my leave. It has been a full day and these notes need to be whipped into a full edition by end of voyage.
Goodnight Travellers.
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Grand Traveller class type T Transport - TL 13
</font><blockquote>code:</font><hr /><pre style="font-size:x-small; font-family: monospace;">+10,000.0dT Hull - Cls - PS 600.000
-200.0dT Bridge - std 50.000
-8.0dT Comp m/4 fib -2.0EP 64.000
Avio m/4
Sens m/4
Coms m/3 mas
-400.0dT Jump Drive 3P -300.0EP 1,500.000
-3,000.0dT Fuel x1J3
-500.0dT Maneuver 1G -100.0EP 300.000
Agility +1 -100.0EP
-300.0dT Fusion 13 +300.0EP 900.000
-300.0dT Fuel x4wks
Fuel Scoops 10.000
-50.0dT Fuel Pure 13x10
10.5 hours
-420.0dT Staterooms x105 52.500
crw. qtr.
-60.0dT Staterooms x15 7.500
pvt. qtr.
-480.0dT Staterooms x120 60.000
pas. qtr.
-480.0dT Services x120 60.000
pas. com.
-20.0dT Defense Screen x1
Ndmp f3 x1 -30.0EP 45.000
-300.0dT Weapon Bay x3 3.000
Rpsl fA x3 -30.0EP 30.000
Hardpoints x20 2.000
Dblt x20 15.000
-20.0dT Blas f7 x4 -40.0EP 40.000
Hardpoints x20 2.000
Escp x20 20.000
-60.0dT 6pas x20
-400.0dT Armored Hull f3 40.300
-880.0dT LC Hangers x4 1.760
200dT cap. x4
-2,000.0dT Drop Modules x20 2.200
-120.0dT Passenger Baggage
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MCr3,805.260</pre>[/QUOTE]Discounted cost MCr3,044.208 not including subcraft.
Crew: 18 Officers and 87 Ratings
Officers: Captain, 1st Officer, Helm Officers x2, Astrogation
Officers x2, Ship's Doctor, Flight Officer, Gunnery Officer,
Communications Officer, Engineering Officers x2, and Junior
Officers x6
Ratings: Services x30, Security x30, Gunnery x 14, Engineers x10,
and Medical x3
Passengers: 40 grand staterooms and 160 high staterooms
Designer notes:
Power tends to brown out when all systems are active, as noted in the color text above.
All crew members have a private full stateroom making service aboard very comfortable. There is no baggage allowance for crew beyond what they can pack in their stateroom though.
Grand passage is a new level of service. It includes a double size stateroom and 2 tons of baggage allowance. This comes at a premium cost of course. Single occupancy is Cr24,000 per trip and double occupancy is Cr39,000 shared per trip. Life support costs are standard.
Grand passagengers are determined by an additional roll on the high passengers table but with the Pop column moved down one, there are no grand passengers on Pop 2 of lower worlds. Shared passage requests are (2d4 minus 4) x10% of booked grand passage tickets.
IMTU I roll once per table per jump undertaken, so for example on a J3 trip you will have on average 3 times the passengers and cargo as a J1 trip. This is to allow more revenue for the long ships, its not so much the prices but the volume where they find the profit. Presuming this ship can fill its staterooms and holds, especially with a good lot of priority cargo, it should come close to profitable, I think, on a quick analysis and a few presumptions
On that note about cargo, the ship will only carry priority and regular freight or speculative cargo of non-hazardous and non-security nature. Passenger safety is paramount here.
Another MTU idea, the luxury level shops, services and entertainment options, factored as the doubling of the passenger staterooms above (listed as Services - pas. com.) allow charging passage in a way similar to priority cargo. That is per jump number rather than per trip. This factor is not included in the basic description of grand passage noted above. More profits.
Shipping boats (maximum 50tons per container) costs Cr1,300 per ton per trip to account for the extra volume lost, the remaining volume in any container with a boat is used for cargo. Shipping yachts costs only Cr1,100 per ton per trip due to the lower lost volume. Interesting bit of art imitating life. While working on this design and wondering if anyone else would see the reasons for shipping ships I saw a show on the Super Servant class of ships. These real life ships faced the scrap heap and layoffs not long ago but one, the Super Servant 4, was saved when the owners asked the crew for ideas to keep it working and to keep their jobs. The idea that paid off was transporting luxury yachts across the ocean for owners who didn't want to risk the sail or preserve their ship but still change the waters they sail in. So there you go
The Drop Modules are designed much like Drop Tanks. Each one is 100tons and slips inside its armored slot on the ship or into a similar slot on the shuttle or cutter below.
Note the armor and weapons, including the hardpoint turret installed escape pods are TL16 while the rest of the design is TL13. The same class ship could be built entirely at TL13 with very similar characteristics, just at slightly reduced performance of those systems.
The ship's route travels through Corridor and Deneb connecting Kaasu and Deneb. Each jump is J3 to maximize profits and the round trip takes just less than a year, allowing a short stop over at Deneb and annual maintenance at home on Kaasu.
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Kobiir class type Y Shuttle - TL 13
</font><blockquote>code:</font><hr /><pre style="font-size:x-small; font-family: monospace;"> +200.0dT Hull - Wdg - FS 24.000
-10.0dT AF upgrd 2.400
-20.0dT Bridge - std 1.000
-2.0dT Comp m/2 8.000
Avio m/2
Sens m/2
Coms m/1 mas
-34.0dT Maneuver 6G -12.0EP 17.000
Agility +0
-15.0dT Fusion 13 +15.0EP 45.000
-15.0dT Fuel x4wks
Fuel Scoops 0.200
Fuel Pure none
-4.0dT Staterooms x1 0.500
crw. qtr.
Hardpoints x2 0.200
Trpl x1 1.000
-1.0dT Blas f5 x1 -3.0EP 3.000
Trpl x1 1.000
-1.0dT Sand f5 x1 0.750
-8.0dT Armored Hull f3 1.100
-90.0dT Custom use
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MCr105.150</pre>[/QUOTE]Discounted cost MCr84.12 not including extras.
Crew: 2 or 4 Ratings
Pilot and Gunner
Designer notes:
Built to complement the Grand Traveller this ship is also built to TL13 standards except for the final hull armor and weapons.
Typical crew consists of a Pilot and Gunner but up to two more can be added. The stateroom is provided for extended duty cycles and allows round the clock operations with 4 crewpersons hotbunking when the standard module is employed
With the module dropped the ship gains agility 6.
The standard shuttle module must devote 5tons to airframe controls and uses 1 ton for the stern mounted sand caster and 4 tons for the stateroom. That leaves 90 tons for custom use.
The passenger module costs and additional Mcr10.125 and can carry 45 passengers in luxuriously spacious seats, which convert to emergency low berths with a total capacity of 360 souls should need warrant.
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Raegten class type Y Cutter - TL 16
</font><blockquote>code:</font><hr /><pre style="font-size:x-small; font-family: monospace;"> +200.0dT Hull - Cls - PS 12.000
-20.0dT Bridge - std 1.000
-6.0dT Comp m/6 fib -5.0EP 63.600
Avio m/1
Sens m/4
Coms m/3 mas
-8.0dT Jump Drive 3P -6.0EP 32.000
-20.0dT Fuel x1J1
-40.0dT Fuel x1J2
-4.0dT Maneuver 1G (-2.0EP) 6.000
Agility +1 (-2.0EP)
-10.0dT Maneuver 2G -4.0EP 7.000
Agility +2 -4.0EP
-6.0dT Fusion 16 +18.0EP 18.000
-6.0dT Fuel x4wks
Fuel Scoops 0.200
-2.0dT Fuel Pure 16x1 0.024
1.2 hours
-16.0dT Staterooms x4 2.000
crw. qtr.
-50.0dT Weapon Bay x1 0.500
Misl fA x1 12.000
Hardpoints x1 0.100
Sngl x1 0.500
-2.0dT Paws f3 x1 -5.0EP 3.000
-2.0dT Pop up 2.500
-8.0dT Armored Hull f3 1.100
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MCr161.524</pre>[/QUOTE]Discounted cost MCr129.2192 not including extras.
Crew: 3 Officers and 4 Ratings
Officers: Pilot(Captain), Astrogation, and Doctor
Ratings: Gunnery x 3, and Engineers x1
Designer notes:
Named for the "Wolf" in a wolf in sheep's clothing type fable of Kaasu origin.
Crew share staterooms except the Captain.
With the Drop Module away the ship is capable of 4G and agility 4 and J2 on internal fuel or J6 using the module as a Drop Tank.
The 1G drive is part of the Drop Module and is used to mimic the type Y yacht.
The missile bay is also part of the Drop Module and cannot fire once dropped, though it could be used for crude bombardment or as a large drifting mine.
With the Drop Module away the ship becomes fully streamlined.
While ships of this class take a name like Raegten or Wolf they are usually more often in the guise of one of the "sheep" and by license and using a legally altered transponder often use the name of a real Lady class type Y yacht. Pirates beware!
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Deckplans in the works, scribbles and sketches now. May be put up at the Yahoo Traveller Deckplans group <http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/deckplans/> eventually...
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Adventure seed, just add imagination and watch them grow
Scenario
The players are minding their own business (yeah like that ever happens) when they find a small electronic document pad of very fancy design. They could be just entering a restaurant or bar and find it on the table, chair or floor. No one nearby is looking for anything and all attempts to attract an owner will be met with blank stares and no one remembers seeing anyone there recently.
The document pad is a brochure containing touristy info and deckplans of the Grand Traveller and the little INSIDE report above, as well as a ticket for passage aboard the Grand Traveller. Its for a single Grand Passage but may be bumped up to a double occupancy if the characters wish to pay the difference. It cannot be refunded or sold since its only hours before final boarding of the shuttle. If they want the players can still manage to book additional passages if there are more than two or they may find temporary employment if the referee is feeling kind.
When the player(s) with the ticket board a steward will show them to the stateroom and give them the key to the baggage compartments opposite, which the steward informs them has already been stowed, may he assist in retrieving some luggage now he'll ask. He'll be helpful to the point of annoyance but polite and is not angling for a tip and will refuse if offered stating its against policy. If he can be of no further help at the moment he will leave.
So just what is in the luggage? Whose ticket is it?
Options:
1 - The traveller is a wealthy businessman and the luggage are samples of his inventory. Its all pretty esoteric and not highly valuable. He dropped the ticket and was shortly after that mugged and is in hospital on the planet. He will be understandably angry at the theft of the ticket and may even believe the player characters are the muggers. If however when they examine the luggage and discover the owners name they track him down and return it he will be inclined to believe their story and not press charges. If they look upon their destination they will find the clients he was to meet and if they present the samples the clients will mention it to the businessman and he may even look up the player characters to reward them for saving the account, something of a token, but they will also have gained a valuable future patron.
2 - The traveller is part of conspiracy, including some other passengers and a few crew. He panicked at the last moment and couldn't go through with it and is on the run the other way right now. The luggage will include an assortment of disassembled and disguised weapons, assembled to look like normal items. This is no cheap effort and it has a decent chance to succeed if everyone plays their part. Soon after jump the player character passenger(s) will be paid a visit by one of the group. They will be disturbed and ask to examine the ticket, even calling the purser if needed. Once they realize the complication they will threaten the character(s) if they don't agree to join in and do the part of the missing man. This is a chance for the character(s) to get inside and thwart the plans from there. It is the only chance but they will be closely watched. If they manage to derail the scheme and save the ship they will be heroes, unless they are thought to be active participants with a last minute change of heart. They can prove their innocence if they can track down the original member and convince him to confess and serve time, yeah, right.
3 - The traveller is a thief and he was going to make a trip and pluck a few prime pigeons but alas the authorities spotted him in the bar and quietly hustled him off, during which he dropped the ticket so the evidence wouldn't be found. That being in his luggage, several MCr worth of jewels and such hidden in it. He will of course get off in short order and book passage to catch up to the ship and reclaim his baggage. He will not be happy if the character(s) have discovered it, but will play the part of wealthy traveller and give them a pittance for its return. If he finds anything missing he will leave no rock unturned to hunt down and deal with the thieves. Perhaps framing them for his crimes by planting evidence and then informing the authorities.
INSIDE the Grand Traveller - A voyage aboard the new luxury cruise ship of Corridor
Greetings fellow Travellers! I'm reporting today from Kaasu in Corridor aboard a brand new Snapii boat, but that's not the subject of this report. I'm here covering the maiden voyage of the flagship of a new class of luxury cruise starships. The Grand Traveller was just christened and slipped from her forms and in a few hours I'll be aboard her with over a hundred of Corridor sector's elite and famous. The ship is amazing and the parade of small craft and yachts led by the Duchess' own is astonishing. Even more so when you consider some of these craft, including this boat, will be making the jump with the Grand Traveller as one of the many services featured. I'm still trying to pick out the secret escorts but they so perfectly match their civilian counterparts its impossible. Trust me, I've seen the schematics for them, and anyone who attempts star piracy against a GT should have their head examined, if it can be recovered from the wreckage of their corsair. For those of you who haven't been following the news this journey started a little over two years ago with a request by the Kaasu Intergalactic Star Shipyards.
The call went out at that time for design proposals to celebrate the approaching Silver Jubilee of the appointment of Lady Anna Vokova Kaasu-Rehman as Duchess of Kaasu. The goal was to create a new luxury starship class that could serve as part of an eventual Domain spanning fleet to not only encourage more travel but also serve as an envoy for the Imperium and the Duchess as its representative in Corridor. As such the design was to incorporate a new level of service and safety. The winning architect would not only become famous and wealthy but the design would provide a much needed civilian diversity to the shipyards of Corridor, long famous for their military specialties.
But that as they say was then. Today we see the result of that call and the hard work of the builders to prepare this ship for her premiere on the date of the 25th anniversary of the appointment of the Duchess. Parts of it were built throughout Corridor and shipped to Kaasu for the final assembly around the jump core and the final hull plating. This method and the ship's modular design saved considerable time, and once production is fully engaged will result in a rate of one GT class ship completed every 2 years per slip. To better acquaint the public with this new ship I will be giving you an inside look courtesy of the Duchess, the Captain, and the architect. Mention should also be made, and my thanks extended to, my patron for this trip, Count Mclean. It is by his generous employment that I will experience this trip to the fullest through ferrying his new Snapii boat aboard the Grand Traveller. Normally the purchase and transport of this fine Kaasuian boat to its new home in Drayne would involve four separate trips aboard a Subsidized Merchant at an expense of more than Cr150,000 and two months or more for the trips. Aboard the Grand Traveller the cost will be less than a third that and that includes the basic high passage ticket. However, to better sample the full experience for my readers, I have put my pay for the delivery towards upgrading the basic high passage ticket to the full grand passage ticket.
Let's begin the tour with an overview of the ship's exterior as it makes its way to the jump point. To some she may be less than beautiful on the surface but this is a design who's beauty is within. She is a conglomerate of modular compartments arranged into the shape of a capital letter "A" with the thrusters and engineering located in the base of the upper triangle which houses most of the ships operations. The two legs form the passenger quarters with every stateroom afforded an exterior view to the side and forward, while on the inside of each leg are 10 heavy modular containers for cargo and small craft. In addition to the Kobiir (COO-beer) class shuttle to transfer those modular containers up to three Lady class ships may be carried in the forward triangle's internal hangers. This includes room for the Duchess' own Lady Marial, a type Y yacht, with its dedicated hanger in the forward section of the triangle near the private quarters. The other two hangers may be rented for transport by owners of the popular Lady class type Y yacht or used to carry the Raegten class (ray-TIN) type Y escort cutters.
At this range and without anything near enough for scale its hard to get a feel for just how Grand this Traveller is. With a full complement of modules she displaces some 10,000 tons. Fully laden she can make a jump of 3 parsecs and travel at a stately 1g. Her armored hull and the oneway glassteel viewports are all finished in an antiqued silver. Huge glassteel ports shaped as Imperial Sunbursts are inlaid on the the dorsal and ventral hull of the forward triangle. They glow softly from the dedicated lighting behind them and I'm told the jump grid is programmed to trace out from them creating a spectacular display as this Grand Traveller prepares to jump. While the ship includes fuel scoops they are well worked into the hull and when closed, as is their normal state, they are not visible at all.
That's about it for the general exterior layout and the call has gone out for "all aboard" so its time for me to join the others with craft to dock and then join the crowd in the Imperial Room for the jump party. Remember the Imperial Sunbursts I mentioned, the dorsal one is a feature element of the two story ceiling of the Imperial Room and I'm told its just as beautiful from the inside as the outside.
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Hello again, the docking of the boat was exceedingly easy thanks in part to the advanced computer control and a dedicated flight control officer. Once aboard in one of the modules the crew secured the boat while I got to stroll in shirtsleeve comfort to my nearby quarters. Most of the passengers boarded earlier after a quick flight on the shuttle and are already enjoying the hospitality of the crew in the Imperial Room. The shuttle can carry up to 45 passengers in luxury comfort at 6 gees in its standard module, which if needed converts to a lifeboat with emergency low berth capacity for 360 souls. When not ferrying passengers it can leave the module in the hanger and transport any of the carried modules. This is often done to speed priority cargo to its destination while the passengers enjoy the slow cruise to port. Without any modules the airframe shuttle is incredibly agile, performing much like a heavy fighter.
My grand passage stateroom is on the upper level of the port leg, near the middle. The lower level of each leg is for the basic high passage staterooms while the double size grand staterooms are on the upper levels. Each upper floor section has two grand staterooms and two high staterooms, as well as a small common lounge. The lower floor has six high staterooms and a similar lounge. The upper floor may be sealed off from the lower and adjacent modules in case of emergency or to create a secure suite if desired by the passengers. The lower floor can also be sealed off in emergency but passengers may not book suites here. The aft of each leg houses a 100 ton replusor bay for defense and emergency small craft braking. Together the two can stop any small craft in its tracks. A third 100 ton repulsor bay is mounted in the bow for similar defense and utility.
Moving forward to the Imperial Room one finds the corridors are spacious and the lockers for passenger baggage set into the wall opposite the staterooms are very handy and thoughtful. The regularly placed lounges allow easy access between decks and to the escape pods. In addition to the capacity of the shuttle there are also enough escape pods for the full passenger capacity, allowing full double passenger occupancy supported emergency escape. The escape pods are clearly marked and can safely, though not very comfortably carry six average persons away from the ship in the unlikely event the order to abandon ship is given. Traversing part way forward through the lower deck I can say it is every bit as luxurious as the upper deck with the only difference being the number of doors on each side of the lounge indicating the smaller stateroom sizes. The lounges are not large but comfortable, with each consisting of a pair of small tables with three comfortable chairs around them. A small lift connects the two floors and there is a simple automat and fresher for passenger convenience. The end of each lower section is marked by a small airlock, connecting adjoining sections and allowing access to the attached modular containers, the upper levels lack the airlock and simply have an iris to seal them off.
Back on the upper deck at the end of each leg where it joins the forward triangle is a large lobby. It is here that most passengers will board after arriving via the shuttle or a small craft docking in the spacious hanger or through the outer airlock connections to the high port or other ships. Forward of the lobbies are the many shops, services and entertainment options for passengers, all leading to the central Imperial Room with its soaring ceiling. The room is already packed and the time to engage the jump is nearly at hand. The servants with trays of drinks and appetizers number almost as many as the passengers. In my slow meander taking in the sites along the way I have managed to miss most of the lesser speakers and it is only the Duchess left to say her piece and give the official order to charge the jump drive before we tumble into the void.
In the grand tradition of starships of old the lights of the Imperial Room are dimmed as the jump drive is engaged and the crowd grows hushed. Then the glow and arcing of the jump grid becomes evident through the huge clear Imperial Sunburst in the ceiling and the room breaths a sigh of rapture as all eyes are drawn to the spectacular display. Then in a sudden explosion of light the whole room glows in the light before it fades to black and we are in jump space. The crowd goes wild, passengers and crew both, cheering as the lights come up and the musicians begin to play. We have jumped and now the first and biggest of many parties can begin, to be outdone only by the breakout party at the other end of the void. I notice the Imperial Sunburst has now been switched to display mode and presents a pleasant early evening Kaasuian sky scene, in perfect synch with the ship time I note glancing at my chrono.
I'll pass on this festivity, there will be more over the next few days and I still have the lower forward deck to prowl and report to you, and then its on to the bridge to meet the Captain.
Threading my way out of the crowd I find the halls eerily quiet thanks to the absence of any other passengers and the excellent attention of the active acoustics. Throughout the passenger areas of the ship normal conversations can be held and only a meter away even the sharpest ear can't make it out as more than a sibilant whisper. Even shouts only carry a few meters and all the regular extraneous mechanical and electrical noises are entirely canceled. The quiet is spooky and I'm glad when my special vip pass automatically opens the access to the lower decks for me, and the familiar hum of a living ship and the sound of its crew at work.
Below decks of the forward triangle the engineering sections are arranged around the lower aft hanger, which is directly below the shuttle hanger. The thrusters are to port and starboard, with the power plants forward of that. In the middle, right over the other Imperial Sunburst, though heavily shielded and armored, is the jump drive, the very heart of the ship. Except for the size and newness these areas are much like those of any other starship.
Flanking the engineering space to port and starboard along the hull are the crew quarters, similar to the lower deck passenger quarters, including small lounges regularly spaced between groups of staterooms. Catching a crewperson in the hall I get a peek inside one of the rooms. While nice enough, better in fact than most small traders, these quarters are not quite as luxurious as those of the passengers, until we come to the officers sections. Here the quality is a mirror of that of the lower passenger decks. Its only through the officers section, requiring a crew or vip pass and verification from an officer on the bridge that we can get access to the bridge in the lower bow and the hanger of the Duchess' yacht above that. Access to the private quarters is only through the bridge or directly from the hanger.
The bridge is huge by all standards, as expected for a ship of this size and complexity. Full ports along the outer hull afford excellent views though of course they are not really practical for operations. Some traditions and psychological needs die slowly, some live forever. The aft of the bridge is the C&C for the Captain and immediate subordinates, as well as a couple vip seats. From here one can see the whole bridge which is slightly recessed below the level of the C&C area. The areas below are for control of the sub-systems such as the defenses and flight control. The computers and electronics are also part of this area.
The Captain and the architect, who have both left the party early to check out the ship's performance review post jump, are a wealth of insight into the technical and logistical aspects of the ship. For example, while no secret few know that the ship can, with all the modular containers dropped, make Jump 4 with a simple powerplant swap for an advanced model. This would be done if the ship were needed in service to the Imperium in time of war so it could match fleet jump minimums. This does bring up a question. Why is the ship built to such a common level of technology when Kaasu is one of the leading edge shipyards of Corridor? The answer is for many reasons. Ability to service the ship at almost any class A or B starport for one. The modular construction nature and spreading the wealth of the build among many systems is another. This also works with the plans to expand the service, allowing even more shipyards to build new ships. In fact only the weapons systems are designed to Kaasuian standards and they are easily added or swapped for lower tech versions if necessary, or fitted with Kaasuian exports if the ship is built elsewhere. One interesting tidbit let slip by my comment on the quaint custom of jump dimming is that it is in fact a necessity, as the powerplant is so tightly designed that when drawing power with all systems the ship does tend to brown out. It seems the "adoption" of the custom is a clever smoke screen to cover a minor design flaw.
I could go on but I am called by the Duchess to join her in the private suite for a brief tour, its sure to be the high point of my report. Ascending in the elevator I wonder what kind of reception awaits me and who else will be in attendance. When the door opens I am greeted by the Duchess's Guard, two very solid looking obviously ex-Marines, one male and one female. I'm sure I've been thoroughly scanned on the way up but it doesn't compare to the feeling of the calculated assessment of these two. With a short gesture I am invited in and drink in the grandeur of the quarters. It is an open design plan on several levels with clever use of holoscreens and the virtual environment makes it feel like I've stepped into the garden of a mountain estate on Kaasu, above the taint where the air is intoxicating and the temperature mild. I see the Duchess waiting by a small terrace table and join her. While we wait for a light morsel to go with the fine wine she informs me the setting is a complimentary to her real gardens at home, confirming my impression. The scene is also timed to match Kaasu time I note and sunset is nearly upon us. As the air chills I am invited into the viewroom where we have warm coaadiir and then a quick tour of the rest of the rooms. All tastefully and elegantly done. We end with a look in on the Lady Marial in her hanger before I bid the Duchess a good evening and take my leave. It has been a full day and these notes need to be whipped into a full edition by end of voyage.
Goodnight Travellers.
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Grand Traveller class type T Transport - TL 13
</font><blockquote>code:</font><hr /><pre style="font-size:x-small; font-family: monospace;">+10,000.0dT Hull - Cls - PS 600.000
-200.0dT Bridge - std 50.000
-8.0dT Comp m/4 fib -2.0EP 64.000
Avio m/4
Sens m/4
Coms m/3 mas
-400.0dT Jump Drive 3P -300.0EP 1,500.000
-3,000.0dT Fuel x1J3
-500.0dT Maneuver 1G -100.0EP 300.000
Agility +1 -100.0EP
-300.0dT Fusion 13 +300.0EP 900.000
-300.0dT Fuel x4wks
Fuel Scoops 10.000
-50.0dT Fuel Pure 13x10
10.5 hours
-420.0dT Staterooms x105 52.500
crw. qtr.
-60.0dT Staterooms x15 7.500
pvt. qtr.
-480.0dT Staterooms x120 60.000
pas. qtr.
-480.0dT Services x120 60.000
pas. com.
-20.0dT Defense Screen x1
Ndmp f3 x1 -30.0EP 45.000
-300.0dT Weapon Bay x3 3.000
Rpsl fA x3 -30.0EP 30.000
Hardpoints x20 2.000
Dblt x20 15.000
-20.0dT Blas f7 x4 -40.0EP 40.000
Hardpoints x20 2.000
Escp x20 20.000
-60.0dT 6pas x20
-400.0dT Armored Hull f3 40.300
-880.0dT LC Hangers x4 1.760
200dT cap. x4
-2,000.0dT Drop Modules x20 2.200
-120.0dT Passenger Baggage
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MCr3,805.260</pre>[/QUOTE]Discounted cost MCr3,044.208 not including subcraft.
Crew: 18 Officers and 87 Ratings
Officers: Captain, 1st Officer, Helm Officers x2, Astrogation
Officers x2, Ship's Doctor, Flight Officer, Gunnery Officer,
Communications Officer, Engineering Officers x2, and Junior
Officers x6
Ratings: Services x30, Security x30, Gunnery x 14, Engineers x10,
and Medical x3
Passengers: 40 grand staterooms and 160 high staterooms
Designer notes:
Power tends to brown out when all systems are active, as noted in the color text above.
All crew members have a private full stateroom making service aboard very comfortable. There is no baggage allowance for crew beyond what they can pack in their stateroom though.
Grand passage is a new level of service. It includes a double size stateroom and 2 tons of baggage allowance. This comes at a premium cost of course. Single occupancy is Cr24,000 per trip and double occupancy is Cr39,000 shared per trip. Life support costs are standard.
Grand passagengers are determined by an additional roll on the high passengers table but with the Pop column moved down one, there are no grand passengers on Pop 2 of lower worlds. Shared passage requests are (2d4 minus 4) x10% of booked grand passage tickets.
IMTU I roll once per table per jump undertaken, so for example on a J3 trip you will have on average 3 times the passengers and cargo as a J1 trip. This is to allow more revenue for the long ships, its not so much the prices but the volume where they find the profit. Presuming this ship can fill its staterooms and holds, especially with a good lot of priority cargo, it should come close to profitable, I think, on a quick analysis and a few presumptions
On that note about cargo, the ship will only carry priority and regular freight or speculative cargo of non-hazardous and non-security nature. Passenger safety is paramount here.
Another MTU idea, the luxury level shops, services and entertainment options, factored as the doubling of the passenger staterooms above (listed as Services - pas. com.) allow charging passage in a way similar to priority cargo. That is per jump number rather than per trip. This factor is not included in the basic description of grand passage noted above. More profits.
Shipping boats (maximum 50tons per container) costs Cr1,300 per ton per trip to account for the extra volume lost, the remaining volume in any container with a boat is used for cargo. Shipping yachts costs only Cr1,100 per ton per trip due to the lower lost volume. Interesting bit of art imitating life. While working on this design and wondering if anyone else would see the reasons for shipping ships I saw a show on the Super Servant class of ships. These real life ships faced the scrap heap and layoffs not long ago but one, the Super Servant 4, was saved when the owners asked the crew for ideas to keep it working and to keep their jobs. The idea that paid off was transporting luxury yachts across the ocean for owners who didn't want to risk the sail or preserve their ship but still change the waters they sail in. So there you go
The Drop Modules are designed much like Drop Tanks. Each one is 100tons and slips inside its armored slot on the ship or into a similar slot on the shuttle or cutter below.
Note the armor and weapons, including the hardpoint turret installed escape pods are TL16 while the rest of the design is TL13. The same class ship could be built entirely at TL13 with very similar characteristics, just at slightly reduced performance of those systems.
The ship's route travels through Corridor and Deneb connecting Kaasu and Deneb. Each jump is J3 to maximize profits and the round trip takes just less than a year, allowing a short stop over at Deneb and annual maintenance at home on Kaasu.
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Kobiir class type Y Shuttle - TL 13
</font><blockquote>code:</font><hr /><pre style="font-size:x-small; font-family: monospace;"> +200.0dT Hull - Wdg - FS 24.000
-10.0dT AF upgrd 2.400
-20.0dT Bridge - std 1.000
-2.0dT Comp m/2 8.000
Avio m/2
Sens m/2
Coms m/1 mas
-34.0dT Maneuver 6G -12.0EP 17.000
Agility +0
-15.0dT Fusion 13 +15.0EP 45.000
-15.0dT Fuel x4wks
Fuel Scoops 0.200
Fuel Pure none
-4.0dT Staterooms x1 0.500
crw. qtr.
Hardpoints x2 0.200
Trpl x1 1.000
-1.0dT Blas f5 x1 -3.0EP 3.000
Trpl x1 1.000
-1.0dT Sand f5 x1 0.750
-8.0dT Armored Hull f3 1.100
-90.0dT Custom use
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MCr105.150</pre>[/QUOTE]Discounted cost MCr84.12 not including extras.
Crew: 2 or 4 Ratings
Pilot and Gunner
Designer notes:
Built to complement the Grand Traveller this ship is also built to TL13 standards except for the final hull armor and weapons.
Typical crew consists of a Pilot and Gunner but up to two more can be added. The stateroom is provided for extended duty cycles and allows round the clock operations with 4 crewpersons hotbunking when the standard module is employed
With the module dropped the ship gains agility 6.
The standard shuttle module must devote 5tons to airframe controls and uses 1 ton for the stern mounted sand caster and 4 tons for the stateroom. That leaves 90 tons for custom use.
The passenger module costs and additional Mcr10.125 and can carry 45 passengers in luxuriously spacious seats, which convert to emergency low berths with a total capacity of 360 souls should need warrant.
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Raegten class type Y Cutter - TL 16
</font><blockquote>code:</font><hr /><pre style="font-size:x-small; font-family: monospace;"> +200.0dT Hull - Cls - PS 12.000
-20.0dT Bridge - std 1.000
-6.0dT Comp m/6 fib -5.0EP 63.600
Avio m/1
Sens m/4
Coms m/3 mas
-8.0dT Jump Drive 3P -6.0EP 32.000
-20.0dT Fuel x1J1
-40.0dT Fuel x1J2
-4.0dT Maneuver 1G (-2.0EP) 6.000
Agility +1 (-2.0EP)
-10.0dT Maneuver 2G -4.0EP 7.000
Agility +2 -4.0EP
-6.0dT Fusion 16 +18.0EP 18.000
-6.0dT Fuel x4wks
Fuel Scoops 0.200
-2.0dT Fuel Pure 16x1 0.024
1.2 hours
-16.0dT Staterooms x4 2.000
crw. qtr.
-50.0dT Weapon Bay x1 0.500
Misl fA x1 12.000
Hardpoints x1 0.100
Sngl x1 0.500
-2.0dT Paws f3 x1 -5.0EP 3.000
-2.0dT Pop up 2.500
-8.0dT Armored Hull f3 1.100
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MCr161.524</pre>[/QUOTE]Discounted cost MCr129.2192 not including extras.
Crew: 3 Officers and 4 Ratings
Officers: Pilot(Captain), Astrogation, and Doctor
Ratings: Gunnery x 3, and Engineers x1
Designer notes:
Named for the "Wolf" in a wolf in sheep's clothing type fable of Kaasu origin.
Crew share staterooms except the Captain.
With the Drop Module away the ship is capable of 4G and agility 4 and J2 on internal fuel or J6 using the module as a Drop Tank.
The 1G drive is part of the Drop Module and is used to mimic the type Y yacht.
The missile bay is also part of the Drop Module and cannot fire once dropped, though it could be used for crude bombardment or as a large drifting mine.
With the Drop Module away the ship becomes fully streamlined.
While ships of this class take a name like Raegten or Wolf they are usually more often in the guise of one of the "sheep" and by license and using a legally altered transponder often use the name of a real Lady class type Y yacht. Pirates beware!
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Deckplans in the works, scribbles and sketches now. May be put up at the Yahoo Traveller Deckplans group <http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/deckplans/> eventually...
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Adventure seed, just add imagination and watch them grow
Scenario
The players are minding their own business (yeah like that ever happens) when they find a small electronic document pad of very fancy design. They could be just entering a restaurant or bar and find it on the table, chair or floor. No one nearby is looking for anything and all attempts to attract an owner will be met with blank stares and no one remembers seeing anyone there recently.
The document pad is a brochure containing touristy info and deckplans of the Grand Traveller and the little INSIDE report above, as well as a ticket for passage aboard the Grand Traveller. Its for a single Grand Passage but may be bumped up to a double occupancy if the characters wish to pay the difference. It cannot be refunded or sold since its only hours before final boarding of the shuttle. If they want the players can still manage to book additional passages if there are more than two or they may find temporary employment if the referee is feeling kind.
When the player(s) with the ticket board a steward will show them to the stateroom and give them the key to the baggage compartments opposite, which the steward informs them has already been stowed, may he assist in retrieving some luggage now he'll ask. He'll be helpful to the point of annoyance but polite and is not angling for a tip and will refuse if offered stating its against policy. If he can be of no further help at the moment he will leave.
So just what is in the luggage? Whose ticket is it?
Options:
1 - The traveller is a wealthy businessman and the luggage are samples of his inventory. Its all pretty esoteric and not highly valuable. He dropped the ticket and was shortly after that mugged and is in hospital on the planet. He will be understandably angry at the theft of the ticket and may even believe the player characters are the muggers. If however when they examine the luggage and discover the owners name they track him down and return it he will be inclined to believe their story and not press charges. If they look upon their destination they will find the clients he was to meet and if they present the samples the clients will mention it to the businessman and he may even look up the player characters to reward them for saving the account, something of a token, but they will also have gained a valuable future patron.
2 - The traveller is part of conspiracy, including some other passengers and a few crew. He panicked at the last moment and couldn't go through with it and is on the run the other way right now. The luggage will include an assortment of disassembled and disguised weapons, assembled to look like normal items. This is no cheap effort and it has a decent chance to succeed if everyone plays their part. Soon after jump the player character passenger(s) will be paid a visit by one of the group. They will be disturbed and ask to examine the ticket, even calling the purser if needed. Once they realize the complication they will threaten the character(s) if they don't agree to join in and do the part of the missing man. This is a chance for the character(s) to get inside and thwart the plans from there. It is the only chance but they will be closely watched. If they manage to derail the scheme and save the ship they will be heroes, unless they are thought to be active participants with a last minute change of heart. They can prove their innocence if they can track down the original member and convince him to confess and serve time, yeah, right.
3 - The traveller is a thief and he was going to make a trip and pluck a few prime pigeons but alas the authorities spotted him in the bar and quietly hustled him off, during which he dropped the ticket so the evidence wouldn't be found. That being in his luggage, several MCr worth of jewels and such hidden in it. He will of course get off in short order and book passage to catch up to the ship and reclaim his baggage. He will not be happy if the character(s) have discovered it, but will play the part of wealthy traveller and give them a pittance for its return. If he finds anything missing he will leave no rock unturned to hunt down and deal with the thieves. Perhaps framing them for his crimes by planting evidence and then informing the authorities.
